Research Type: Psychological Behaviour & Health

Mental ill health places a major disease burden on society and Northern Ireland has one of the highest rates of poor mental health in the UK. A range of risk factors for poor mental health have been identified including deprivation, low education, unemployment, co-morbid physical health problems and family history. However, there are many questions relating to mental health that remain unclear; some of these form the basis of the proposed study and are listed below.

Childhood environment can have a long-term impact on the individual by initiating health trajectories that either protect or increase vulnerability over the lifespan (Wadsworth ME, 1997). Change of residence can be an emotionally distressing experience, especially for children, as it can lead to the discontinuation of both familial life and social networks (Qin P, 2009). Stressful changes the individual has no control of, can be difficult to cope with and thus affect emotional well-being.

The provision of informal care[1] within the family and among neighbours plays an increasingly important role for individuals, local communities and social services in today’s ageing societies. Informal care within the home is a potentially cost effective way of maintaining people’s independence and it is a mode of care that is often found to be preferred by clients (Genet et al. 2011). However, informal care poses a considerable strain on the carer, and experiences of stress, burden and fatigue are common. If experienced over prolonged periods of time, caregiver strain and burden can result in mental health problems, such as anxiety and episodes of depression (Falloon, Graham-Hole, and Woodroffe 1993; Coope et al. 1995; Livingston, Manela, and Katona 1996; Falloon, Graham-Hole, and Woodroffe 2009).

The stigmatisation of individuals is believed to have various negative consequences. In terms of health care, for example, it is frequently argued that stigma functions so as to impede help seeking behaviour – such as would be evident in the seeking of a diagnosis or form of treatment. The impact of stigma in impeding help seeking has also been observed in relation to many other conditions such as, STDs, HIV/AIDS, epilepsy, Huntington’s disease and even (though to a lesser degree) relatively common disorders such as diabetes.

Everybody needs to deal with bereavement at some stage; but for some people, this can be a more difficult process. There are many factors that can influence how people cope with the loss of a loved one, including level of family support, financial resources, stress, and the circumstances surrounding death.

Over the past decade there has been a marked increase in levels of alcohol consumption in society, both in terms of the proportion of the population who drink alcohol and in the amount of people who regularly drink above the recommended level. At the same time the number of people dying from alcohol related causes in Northern Ireland has been rising. Recent evidence has shown that alcohol related deaths rates in Northern Ireland, while traditionally being similar to those experienced in England and Wales are now increasing at a faster rate, and as a result the alcohol related death rate in Northern Ireland has exceeded those in England and Wales for a number of years.